Ban Boring Branding

Seth Godin once said “If people aren’t talking about you, they’re not talking about you for a reason. And the reason isn’t that they dislike you. They’re not talking about you because you’re boring.”

The truth is, no brand can afford to be boring. It's way too costly for how much investment has gone into building it. But some brands are so bogged down by boring and inefficient branding that it's next to impossible for them to attract their target audience. 

The following are useful suggestions to take any brand, from basic and boring into intriguing and exciting.

Change how people are seeing your content.

While there is no right or wrong way to communicate with your audience, consistently delivering information in a specific way puts you at the risk of losing their interest. Consider changing the way you present information to them.

Contrary to what you might believe, your audience can get your material in other places besides just the web. Consider some of these options for the visibility of your brand: 

• Projection mapping: Projection mapping allows you to project your video content on any surface
• Print: The only people who think print is dead are the ones who aren't using it properly. Great content in whatever form attracts more viewers. Work with expert printers who know how to interpret your vision and reach your target audience, and see for yourself how print can work wonders for your brand. 
• Email - You can and should use email to share information and connect with your audience.
• Promotional goods: What’s better than a new item? A free new item! One easy way to get people’s attention and ban boring branding is with promotional goods
• Webinars: Webinars are a great way to give your content a more personable feel. The secret is to host webinars with content that solves a problem for your prospective clients, and then drop hints here and there about how your business can help solve this problem. 

There are tons of other suggestions but this should get your creative juices flowing.

Focus on the benefits you offer

Sometimes business owners struggle to attract customers because they are too caught up in promoting the things that fascinate them personally, rather than the things that matter to their target audience. Businesses must always put the customer's perspective first and adhere to the age-old marketing slogan "focus on benefits, not features". What does your company do for its customers? If, for instance, your freight forwarding service helps customers avoid the hassles associated with international trade, that should be the emphasis of your advertising, not your familiarity with the intricacies of the X12 B-17 International Customs Agreement or its 2008 update.

Humanize your brand

Customers today are increasingly interested in learning more about the people behind a product. Why? Because customers see a human brand as one that is more relatable, reliable, and trustworthy. 

In 2016, PayPal realized their public perception was “impersonal” and set out to change it. A key part of their strategy was to include actual customers on their Instagram page.

Guess what?

PayPal saw a 327% rise in its engagement on social media after implementing this. 

You can always transform your brand image by humanizing your brand 

Tell stories

Nothing brings people together like a good story does. As a business owner, you must always think of inventive ways to connect with your target audience on a deeper level, and storytelling wins all the time. For instance, you can tell the story of how your business started or describe your product with goofy explainer videos or animations. 

Boring brands typically include a lot of legalese and factual information on the label's final page, and this catches nobody's attention. All effective advertising must appeal to the audience's emotions rather than just their intellect.

Don't follow the crowd

You shouldn't do things just because it's what everyone else in your industry is doing it.

Standing out from the competition is an important part of effective advertising. One way to stand out from the crowd is to present content in a way that is different from what your target audience is used to seeing or hearing. Creative problem-solving is essential in developing your brand. It will help you remain consistent with the company's values, even as you spice up your branding effort. It's doable; all it takes is some effort

Consider a full rebrand:

Okay, we realize this can sound a little overboard; but hear us out.

A full rebrand can indeed involve changing your brand's name, logo, website, colors, personality, and merchandise, but it allows you to show off your "new and improved" business to an already familiar audience. The best part is that it gives you the opportunity to target your specific audience by using the information and insights you've gathered about your customers since you launched your business. 

For instance, in 2014, Airbnb realized it needed a full rebrand to improve its brand awareness and reach a wider, mainstream audience. Everything down to the brand colors was deliberately chosen to evoke specific emotions. Overall, the rebranding effort was a smashing success, and the logo received multiple design awards. Today, over four million homes are listed on Airbnb, and the company has expanded to nearly 200 countries. Approximately two million guests use Airbnb each night, and the company is now valued at over $50 billion.

If you opt for a rebrand, you can work with better designers, website builders, and printers to build a brand that your customers actually want, and it will all be based on information from the past. It can help you enlarge your market share, reach a new audience, rise above a scandal, and create new possibilities. 

Guinness is another example of a company that did this. In 2016, the company redesigned its visual identity and launched some campaigns to accompany the redesign. After the rebranding, Guinness's return on investment (ROI) in terms of revenue was £19.90 for every £1 spent, and the campaign's total profit nearly doubled the usual for its category. The rebranding not only brought the company into the current era but also attracted the attention of a new audience on social media, which paid off handsomely.

Conclusion

There you have it! The tips you need to improve your branding effort and let your target audience pay attention to you. Remember that to achieve any of these, you need the experience of industry experts who have the skills and resources to bring your brand to life. Leave all printing and promotional goods production to Brandit, and let us bring your brand to life.